Living Pains: Offshoots
by Xada91
Summary: All the Living Pains: Offshoots collected together in one neat little...collection.
1. Offshoots

A/N: A little piece about the Living Pains offshoots.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

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Living Pains: Prologue

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Not all parts of a story can be told at once. Some parts are too large to be included. Others are so off track from what the story entails that their inclusion would send those following it into a pit of confusion. This is true for all stories, both long and short. Some stories however, can have other stories that split off from the main story line and lead down entirely different paths. These offshoots can be either explanations of obscure references or alternate versions of the original story.

- The Xada.


	2. Blank

A/N: Yet another Living Pains off-shoot. This one's going to be a little longer than the others.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

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Living Pains: Blank

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The hedgehog awoke in a hospital. He had no idea what he was doing there. He looked around with confused eyes. He spotted a clipboard attached to the foot of his bed. He snatched it up and read it. _Shadow._ The name sounded familiar to him. He looked at the next word on the paper. _Hedgehog. Shadow the Hedgehog? Is that…me?_ What kind of name was Shadow? It didn't sound normal in the slightest. He looked up when he heard a gasp. Standing before him was a startled looking white bat. Her eyes were opened wide with shock as she stared at him.

"Shadow?" She breathed._ He's awake?_ The question echoed around her spinning mind. _He's awake._ The thought filled her with joy. _He's awake!_ "Shadow!" She yelled in joy.

"So that is my name…" He said thoughtfully. A new idea struck him and he looked at he suspiciously. "And how do you know my name?" He demanded, anger coloring his voice.

"Sh-shadow?" Her heart seemed to stop. "Don't you recognize me?" She stepped forward, her hand held out to him. "We own a club together."

"Club?" He shook his head. "All I remember is…" _A pale yellow hedgehog with blue eyes…Maria…an aggravated cat with a gun…a loud bang…then he was screaming her name in horror…_ He collapsed to his knees, holding his head as the jumbled memories overtook him.

"Shadow?" She was at his side in an instant, trying to pull him to his feet. "Doctor!" She called to the hall. A large dog in a white coat burst into the room. He gasped when he saw Shadow. The hedgehog's eyes were wide open staring into space. He kept muttering Maria over and over under his breath as the image repeated itself. Together the bat and the dog helped him onto the bed, where he snapped himself out of his trance.

"Shadow?" The doctor ventured. "Do you remember anything?" The red eyes bored into his.

"Only the girl being shot." He closed his eyes against the memory. He refused to let it overpower him again. "Who is she batgirl? Who is this Maria?" His terror filled gaze caused her to flinch.

"Your sister." He clenched his teeth in anger.

"Then why can't I remember her!" He pulled himself off of the bed.

"Shadow where are you going?!" The doctor and Rouge asked at the same time.

"Who cares." He shoved the doctor out of his way, still surprisingly strong for his size. He walked down the hallway, stealing a pair of scrubs that he changed into in the elevator. He exited the building and stood in the street outside the hospital. Looking around, he waited for anything familiar to happen. When nothing did he shook his head in disgust and strolled down the street, not caring were he went.

* * *

Amy Rose finally grew tired of listening to her phone ring for the third time. She walked to the couch and searched through her purse for the offensive device.

"Hello?"

"Amy! Where were you?" Rouge asked.

"I'm at home why?" The panic in the bat's voice caught her attention.

"Shadow woke up." Amy's heart stopped.

"Wh-what?" She couldn't believe it. She and Rouge had been visiting Shadow the entire time he was in the coma.

"He woke up! I went in to visit him today and he was standing in his room!" Amy was confused, Rouge didn't sound as happy as she should have.

"How is he?" She asked worried.

"He…I don't know." Amy could here her crying on the other end. "He said he didn't recognize me." Another pause. "He asked me who Maria was." Amy's breath caught in her throat. "Then he just ran out the door."

"I'll be right there." She hanged up and rushed to her car.

* * *

Shadow discovered that he didn't like being around others. He didn't really mind children as much as the adults that made up the crowds surrounding him. They truly frustrated him, children he could excuse because they were young. Adults should know better than to walk into him however. The third time that happened he punched the guy.

"Hey!" The dark grey cat yelled indignantly. Trying to control his patience, Shadow held out his hand.

"Sorry. Bad day, people keep walking into me." The cat smiled and took the offered hand.

"No worries! Name's Tim. Yours?" Shadow thought for a moment.

"Shadow." He said quietly.

"Not a talker huh? That's okay." He gave Shadow a funny look. "You work at the hospital?" He indicated Shadow's current attire.

"No. I just got discharged." He lied easily.

"You didn't have any other clothes?" The ebony hedgehog shook his head. "Cool! Shopping we go then!"

"We?" Tim shot him a grin.

"I can't have my new friend walking around without any shoes or proper clothes. What would the neighbors think?" Shadow gave the cat a level look.

"You're not all there are you?" The cat grinned brightly.

"I really don't care. Now let's go get you some clothes." He weaved his way skillfully through the crowd to the mall, the hedgehog following with a great deal more trouble.

"What's your favorite color?" Tim asked as they entered a store.

"No idea." He answered truthfully.

"Sweet! A challenge." He grabbed a dark red sweeter off the rack. "What do you think of this one?"

"I really don't care Tim." He held the sweater as the cat walked over to the pants section.

"Sweatpants it is then!" He called triumphantly. He grabbed a black pair and tossed them at Shadow. "Now we look for shoes and gloves!" He strode boldly towards that section of the store. Shadow shook his at the cat, actually being entertained instead of annoyed. For some reason that surprised him.

"Hurry up Shadow! I need your shoe size!" The cat called to him. After several pairs of shoes, and sandals, Shadow settled on a pair of angular shoes. They were black, red, and white. "Vanity thy name is Shadow." Tim said sarcastically.

"So how are we paying for these?" Shadow asked confused.

"First put them on." Shadow went to the changing room and did so. "You changed?"

"Yeah." Tim opened the door and went into the room. "Okay now just one minute." He quickly removed all the tags without any problem. "And now we stroll casually out the door as though we hadn't found what we were looking for." Shadow looked at him for a minute.

"We're stealing these?"

"Pretty much." And with that they left the store, Shadow praying they wouldn't get arrested. Then the store's alarm went off. Tim smacked himself on the forehead. "I forgot the shoe tags." They turned around to see the mall security heading towards them.

"What do we do now?" Shadow asked the bemused looking cat.

"That depends. We could stand here and accept our punishment like a good pair of citizens."

"I really don't like that option." Shadow muttered.

"Well then." The cat grinned. "We can run like a couple of idiots."

"That sounds better." The two turned and took off down the mall's hallways, ducking into stores to loose the guards every now and then.

"Bet you they catch you first." The cat called to the hedgehog.

"I'll take that bet!" Shadow replied with a small grin. He rushed ahead of Tim giving him a sardonic salute as he passed.

"Jerk!" He called after him with a huge grin.

Shadow was having a blast. He enjoyed running down the hallways. And the fact that Tim was challenging him made it all the more fun. Until a child stepped out in front of him. He leaped over the child and into a kiosk. Tim tripped over his leg as he tried to pass him. As they sat up, the guards finally caught up to them, panting heavily.

"Hello gents, how can we be of service?" Tim asked raising his hands, an idiotic grin spread over his face.

"Hi Tim." The older of the two guards gasped out wearily.

"You okay sir?" The cat sounded concerned.

"I'm fine. Who's this?" He asked looking at Shadow.

"That's Shadow. He's with me." He put a comradely arm around the perplexed hedgehog. "Now then sir, take us away." The two guards escorted them to the security room, Tim and the old guard having a pleasant chat the entire way.

* * *

"He's where?!" Rouge yelled into the phone. "Okay, we'll be right there." She gave Amy a confused look. "He's at the mall with some cat named Tim. Apparently he tried to steal some clothes."

"Is he an idiot? Why would Shadow rob a store?"

"From what I could tell, it was the cat's idea." She grabbed her purse. "Come on, let's go get him."

* * *

"Got any threes Shadow?" Tim asked, staring at him over his hand of cards.

"No."

"You're supposed to say go fish." The old guard said. "Warren, got any twos?" He asked the younger guard.

"Yes sir." He handed him a card.

"Got any Jacks Tim?" The cat sent him a suspicious look.

"One day I will beat you." He muttered as he handed him another card.

"Are we allowed to play cards with you guys?" Shadow asked. He didn't think that was the way things were supposed to work. The older guard was about to answer when there was a knock on the door. Warren answered it quickly. Rouge and Amy stomped in, looking very annoyed.

"Who's that?" Shadow asked indicating Amy. When she looked like she was going to burst into tears he immediately regretted asking. He stood and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay?" He didn't know why he was concerned about her, she just seemed familiar somehow.

"You really don't remember us?" She asked quietly.

"Shadow? Do you know them?" Tim put a hand on his back.

"I don't know." He said in a near whisper.

"You can't remember anything can you?" He smiled slightly. "That explains what you meant by 'bad day'." He turned to the older guard. "I'll pay for everything. Just drop the charges against my confused buddy here." Shadow looked at him surprised.

"I can't let you do that!"

"Why not?"

"Because it's…wrong?" He ventured.

"Don't worry Shadow, new buddy, new pal. I've got enough money for your bail." With that he handed a large amount of bills to the older guard. "That should cover the clothes and those idiotic shoes as well." The older cop counted the money and nodded.

"Alright Tim. Just, wait at least a month before pulling another stunt like this."

"Yes sir!" The cat said with a salute. After they walked out into the hallway he turned to the others. "Well I'm bored. Where are you guy's off to?"

"The hospital." Amy said as she and Rouge each grabbed one of Shadow's arms.

"Wait, what?! Let me go!" The ebony hedgehog squirmed in their grasp. Tim laughed at the terror on his face.

"Don't worry buddy! I'll come along and make sure they don't try to steal your insides."

"Thanks for the confidence boost Tim." He muttered darkly.

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A/N: Told you it was long. Look out for part two if you care.


	3. Blank 2

A/N: Yet another Living Pains off-shoot. Second and final part of the Blank Saga. That sounds cooler than anything I write deserves. This one is actually about average length for one of these off-shoots.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

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Living Pains: Blank 2

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One year after awakening in the hospital, Shadow sat in Club Rouge, staring at the cat across the table. Neither moving an inch. Giving nor asking for any quarter. The hedgehog squinted his eyes at his opponent. The cat did the same at him. Shadow raised his hand to make his move, holding it for a moment before pulling it back. A bead of sweat dripped down the cat's forehead.

"Will you move already?!" Rouge yelled exasperated. "Knuckles looks like he's going to wet himself."

"I can't take the suspense!" The echidna said indignantly. "And I'm not going to wet myself!"

"Fine." Shadow moved his queen across the board. "Checkmate Tim." The cat studied the board carefully for a moment before knocking his king over.

"I tip my hat to you sir." The cat said with a bow. "Wanna play checkers?"

"Not right now. Rouge? Did you find anything?" He looked to the bat sitting on the bar counter.

"Not much. You never told us your last name so I couldn't as much as would've." She hopped off the bar. "I did find this though." She handed him a printout of an old newspaper. It was about a shooting near the hospital. When he read the article he dropped it to the floor.

"Maria…" He breathed. _Who was she?_ Confusion became anger._ Why can't I remember?!_ He slammed his fist against the table in frustration. He staggered to the door, not really hearing what the others said. _There has to be someway for me to remember. There just has to!_ He began to run, not noticing the tears that had begun to fall. _Maria…running…a gunshot._ "What does it all mean?!" He shouted to the heavens. He fell to his knees. "Nothing makes sense. Just who am I?"

"Shadow?" He looked up to see a female hedgehog, her face hidden by the sun. "Are you okay?" Her voice was warm and full of concern. _Comforting. Just like Maria and grandfather…_ He struggled to follow that chain of thought, searching for a face, a voice anything. _Shadow…give people a chance to be happy._

"Rose?" He finally managed to choke out. She frowned slightly._ That was her name right?_

"Why do you use my last name? You never used to do that." She held her hand out for him. He took it lightly and climbed to his feet.

"I'm fine." He said curtly. Finally he realized he had run without thinking about a location. "Where are we?" He scowled at her giggle. "What."

"We're at the park silly." She frowned in thought. "Why were you crying?" He looked at her, mildly surprised.

"Was I?" He touched his cheeks, feeling the moisture. "I was remembering a few things."

"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to." She said with a pleasant smile. Shadow smirked at her, he could tell she was brimming with curiosity.

"I never talked about myself did I?" He said looking at the sky. When she didn't answer he looked at her. She was staring at something. Following her gaze he realized he was still holding her hand. "Sorry." He said quickly releasing her hand. She smiled lightly.

"Shadow the Hedgehog, are you embarrassed?"

"Wh-what?! No of course not." He said just a little too quickly. She laughed as a light blush touched his cheeks. She grabbed his hand lightly.

"Come on, Shadow! Let's watch the sunset!" She pulled him to a bench. As they sat there she began to hum a happy little tune. As he watched the sunset's colors play across her features her marveled at her existence._ How could I forget someone like her? Someone so simple so…happy. Content._ He again heard the familiar but unknown voice whisper his name. _Maria? Why does this girl, this Rose remind me of someone I can barely remember?_

"That was a beautiful sunset don't you think Shadow?" He felt something in his chest tighten when her eyes met his. Not trusting himself to speak he nodded, hiding his wonderment with a neutral expression. "Would it hurt you to show it?" She joked._ If only you knew._

"It just might." He said with a small smile. He stood and held his hand out for her. "Want me to walk you home?" She took the offered hand gratefully.

"You really don't have to." She met his gaze and broke into a grin. "But if you want to." He nodded, his smile growing slightly. "I live that way." She pointed and they began to walk. "What exactly do you remember? Don't think about anything that hurts too much."

"I remember…being hugged on the beach." She stiffened at this comment. "Does that mean anything to…" He drifted off. "That was you?" A series of memories exploded in his mind. _Pink arms wrapped around him as the sun drifted towards the horizon…a pale yellow hedgehog held his hand as they ran away from their pursuer…an old, grey hedgehog patted him on the shoulder as he read his schoolbooks…the yellow hedgehog and he were sitting under a tree outside the hospital…he was being hugged by the pink hedgehog again…the barrel of a gun pointed at the yellow girl again…he turned around to see a pink hedgehog backing away in surprise…a red echidna and he were boxing together…a blue hedgehog and he were racing along the freeway…he stood outside a building with a white bat…_

The memories washed over him in a flood. He grabbed his head in a panic. Shadow could feel every emotion the black hedgehog had felt in his entire life all at once. The terror of being chased, horror at seeing Maria shot, the joy he felt around her, the rage and sadness he felt at her funeral, the pleasure of laughing with his friends. _Friends…_He thought in sudden understanding.

"That's right," he said to no one in particular, not hearing Amy's panicked questions. "I've been surrounded with the only people I have left and I've been ignoring them." A sudden smile spread upon his face.

"Shadow?" The smile was freaking her out, she wasn't used to him being that expressive._ Maybe he's finally snapped._ She thought horrified. He turned his joy filled gaze to her, fresh tears spilling over his face.

"Rose, I remember!" He picked her up in his arms and began running down the street. "Everything. You, Maria, grandfather, Rouge, Knuckles, Prower, even that idiot Sonic." He ran faster. "I remember my life!" He shouted to the world. He stopped running when he reached her apartment building. He leaned close to her ear so that she could hear his next words. "My name is Shadow Robotnik and I remember." He kissed her on the cheek and walked calmly back to Club Rouge.


	4. Head Bangin'

A/N: Yet another Living Pains off-shoot. Figured I'd explain the whole shovel incident.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

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Living Pains: Head Bangin'

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Amy Rose stood on her balcony, three inches of dirt covering the ground. She patted the dirt down with her shovel. She smiled as she wiped some dirt off her face. She went back into her apartment, a large grin plastered on her face. She just new Shadow was going to be excited by her present. She put the shovel in the tub to clean it. Then she went into the kitchen to make herself a snack.

"Shadow better like my present." She said as she began making a sandwich. "Otherwise I'll have Rouge spend the night." She finished building her sandwich and walked into the living room to eat it.

* * *

Shadow sighed as he climbed the stairs to his apartment. He sighed as he struggled to pull his keys out. "I have one bike, one car, one apartment, and yet I still have about a thousand keys. The hell kind of logic is that?" He finally managed to pick out the key to his apartment. "At least I can get home and get some sleep. Frikin' Rouge keeping the club open way too late for anybody's good." He glanced at his watch. "And it's two in the morning. Perfect."

"Hey buddy." A grey mass of fur poked a hand out to wave at him.

"Hey Tim." Shadow said, stepping over the cat. "You have work today?"

"Yeah, she going to keep it open this late again?" The cat climbed to his feet and fell into step next to the ebony hedgehog.

"Probably." Shadow said, stifling a yawn.

"That sucks." The cat said, popping his back. "You coming in?"

"Probably." The hedgehog muttered, causing the him to laugh.

"Fair enough." He stopped outside a door. "See you later man."

"Later." Shadow continued on toward his destination.

* * *

Amy went into the kitchen to was her plate. When she finished she went into the bathroom and began washing her shovel. She spent a good five minutes washing it before she gave up. The dirt was really caked onto it. When she turned the water off she heard a noise in her apartment. She froze, hoping it was her imagination but nearly screamed when she heard another. Shaking, she grabbed the shovel and held it like a massive hammer. She slowly walked out into the living room. She had just entered the room when someone walked right next to her. She screamed and hit whoever it was with her shovel. The intruder fell to the ground with a thud. Amy ran to the wall and turned on the lights. Lying there, bleeding and unconscious was her roommate Shadow.

"Oh, crap!" She grabbed the phone and called an ambulance. She then knelt next to Shadow, bundling a blanket under his head. "No amnesia, no amnesia, on please, not amnesia again." She muttered to herself.

"Ow." the black-furred hedgehog moaned. "Rose. Was that a shovel?" He managed to force out the words.

"Yeah." She fought back the tears that threatened to fall on him.

"Good swing." He mumbled before passing out again.

* * *

Shadow regained consciousness in a hospital room. "Not again." He closed his eyes. "At least I still remember everything. This time." He winced when he touched the back of his head. "I need to get a helmet."

"Yeah you do." Rouge the bat said, walking into the room. "She hasn't left you all night big guy." The bat gestured to a chair next to his bed. Amy was fast asleep, wearing one of his jackets. "She looks cute that way doesn't she?" Shadow pulled himself higher up on his bed. "Be careful Shadow." She went to the bed.

"Where's the Knucklehead?" He said as she fixed his blankets.

"He's passed out in the waiting room next to Tim." She pulled another chair up to the bed. "You okay?"

"Just trying to figure out why she had a shovel." He said, gazing at Amy with a soft look in his eyes.

"You like her don't you?" Rouge asked him, a small grin on her face.

"Not in the way you think." He said with a yawn. "She reminds me of my sister…" He trailed off as he fell asleep again. Rouge looked at him thoughtfully.

"You have a sister?" She smiled. "I'll ask you tomorrow."

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A/N: Dedicated to the small number of people that have voted in the poll on my profile.


	5. Moving In

A/N: Sometimes it's good to take a break from writing longer stories and just put something random up. Also this is related to Living Pains.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

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Living Pains: Moving In

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Amy Rose was growing impatient. Her new housemate was trying his best to convince her that he didn't need to live in her apartment. She had just caught him trying to sneak out the window.

"Rose you really don't need to do all this." He said not looking at her. "I was fine the way I was." She sighed in exasperation.

"My name is Amy. You lived on the mall's roof! I'm not going to let you do that anymore." She wasn't giving him any choice whatsoever. She smiled at him. "Now go get your stuff and let's set up your room." She opened the door to what had been up to that point her guest room. "I'm thinking red and black paint. Maybe some white."

"Why?" He asked genuinely curious.

"Would you rather pink and blue?" She asked mischievously.

"I would rather shoot myself in the foot." He said giving her a sideways glare. He sighed in resignation. "I guess there's no getting out of this is there?"

"Nope!" She said with a broad grin.

"All right let's get this over with."

* * *

Shadow and Amy spent the next day looking for paint. After they found the colors she was looking for Shadow drove them home. They immediately set to work. Amy decided to start at the top and put a red trim around his room. Shadow was standing next to the ladder in case she fell.

"Be careful Rose. I don't want to look like Knuckles." She looked down in irritation.

"I know what I'm doing Shadow. And don't call me-" She began when the ladder started to tip. She screamed and grabbed it with both hands to steady herself. Unfortunately this meant she dropped her paint brush an Shadow's face. She held her breath as he stared at her. "Shadow I'm sorry!"

"Well, do I look like the Knucklehead?" He interrupted with a slight smile.

* * *

Later that day they were putting the black paint around his room when Shadow got it into his head to take his revenge. He grinned slightly.

"Hey Rose." He called to her.

"My name's-" She stopped when he flicked black paint lightly into her face. She stood there in shocked silence before grinning evilly. "Oh, you are so dead!" She flicked her brush at him. They paused for a moment.

"Did any get on me?" He asked confused. She dipped a spare brush into the leftover red paint and drew a line over his stomach.

"Some did now!" He returned her wicked grin.

"I accept your challenge!" He shouted as she cackled.

* * *

After their epic paint battle they finished painting Shadow's room. He stood there, now more red that black, and smiled in satisfaction.

"So now all we have to do is get you some furniture and clothes." Amy sighed happily, despite being splattered with both colors, .

"What's wrong with the clothes I have now?" He sat next to her on the couch.

"No offense, but you've been wearing the same shirt and pants for a month."

"I wash them!" He said defensively.

"Yeah but it's the principle of the thing." She looked at him pleadingly. He knew he was doomed the second he looked at her puppy-dog eyes.

"Fine."

* * *

The next day Shadow realized exactly how big a mistake agreeing to shop with Amy was. She woke him up at seven in the morning and forced him to drive her to the mall. He was mystified as to why he always had to drive. They spent a short amount of time buying furniture for him. Amy seemed to have already had it picked out.

"Okay Shadow now we can look for you some clothes!" She grabbed his hand and pulled him towards a clothes store. "I think you would look good in dark colors." She said brightly.

"Can't imagine why." He muttered under his breath. "Just nothing blue or pink. Got it?"

"Deal!"

* * *

"Rose I'm not going to walk around in a vest." He had gradually lost the large amount of patience he reserved for her. "Or shorts." He indicated the large pile she had set aside.

"Sonic wears them." He gave her a pointed look. "Fair enough." She smiled.

* * *

Several hours later, they returned home. Shadow once again made his bed on the couch. His furniture would not be arriving for a week. Amy and he flipped on the TV since she was too excited to sleep. As the late night movie they had been watching droned on, Amy cuddled up to Shadow and fell asleep. As it drew to a close Shadow fell asleep with Amy laying against him, his arms wrapped protectively around her.

* * *

A/N: A little Shadamy moment thrown in for you guys. See ya.


	6. Overprotective

A/N: Another Living Pains offshoot. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

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Living Pains: Overprotective

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Shadow pulled his motorcycle up to his apartment building. She shivered involuntarily. He could feel the cold of the January air through his leather jacket and hi sweeter. He walked to the front door, stomping the snow from his feet before stepping over the threshold. He walked to his mailbox and checked for anything interesting. _Junk, junk, late Christmas card for Rose, phone bill._ He grimaced at the last one, trying to burn it with his glare.

With a sigh he began to climb the stairs. He nodded to one of his neighbors as he passed him. The cat nodded back and continued on his way. Shadow smiled and shook his head. _Tim is going to get fired if he doesn't start coming to work. Don't think I'll be able to protect him from Rouge much longer._ He walked to the next stairway, glancing at the elevator as he passed it._ I've got to get Prower to fix that._ With a smile laugh he climbed the stairs to the third floor.

He walked up to his door searching in his pocket for his key. Finding it he unlocked the door only to freeze at the sound of sobbing. He dropped the mail and his bag next to the door. He closed it behind him as he ran into the living room where he saw his housemate crying on the couch.

"Rose?" He asked quietly. She looked up at him and tried to stop hide her tears.

"H-hi Sh-shadow." She said in a horrible imitation of happiness. He frowned at her, causing her façade to drop instantly. She wailed and wrapped her arms around him.

"Rose what's wrong?" He held her back, completely confused about her tears.

"I don't want to talk about it." She whimpered into his chest. His expression darkened in anger.

"Sonic." He hissed under his breath. She clutched him tightly at the name. He swallowed a growl. "Shh…I'm here." He sat down on the couch with her, rubbing her back gently. "Let it out." He whispered. She cried for nearly an hour, Shadow's rage growing with every second. After a while she finally fell asleep. He picked her up in her arms and carried her to her bed. He tucked her in and kissed her forehead. "He will pay." He whispered as he turned and stalked out of the apartment.

As he closed and locked his door he presented an atmosphere of calm. Even when he started his motorcycle and began down the street, he still seemed fine. It wasn't until he came within sight of Sonic's house that he allowed his façade of calm dropped. He parked the motorcycle and ran to the door. Despite the rage on his features, he knocked on the door in a pleasant way. He waited as the footsteps came closer.

"Who is it?" Sonic's voice asked.

"Me." He said quietly. When Sonic started to open the door he charged it, slamming it open. The door crashed against the cobalt hedgehog, knocking him to the floor. Shadow stood above him, pure hate revealed on his face.

"Shadow? What the-" He was cut off by a large bang. Splinters from the wood floor showered the side of his head. His eyes widened in fear. Three inches to the right of his head was a bullet hole. Shadow's gun pointed at his face. "What-"

"Shut up." The ebony hedgehog growled quietly. "If Rose didn't love you I wouldn't have missed." He lowered the gun but didn't put it away. "Tell me what happened."

"That's what this is about? What did she go whining to her big brother because I said she was too immature for me?" He didn't see the punch coming. He landed on the floor, rubbing his chin.

"When I came home she cried herself to sleep! Now tell me exactly what happened." Sonic barely heard the last part. That scared him more than if Shadow had yelled the words.

"Okay, just don't shoot me." He stood back up and backed up out of Shadow's reach. "I had just come off the night shift at work. I was tired, and that idiot Jet was annoying me all night." He leaned against the wall tiredly. "I was walking home when Amy came running up to me, all excited about some date she wanted to go on." He grimaced. _Walking? He must have been tired._ Shadow thought to himself, putting the gun away. "She just kept going on and on. I tried to tell her I was tired, I really did." He lowered his head in shame. "She just wouldn't stop! I finally had enough and I…called her an immature little kid. I said she should stop bugging me and find someone that could stand her." He refused to look at Shadow. The black hedgehog grabbed his arm and forced him to turn towards him. Though he kept his face pointed down the hallway, Shadow could tell he was crying.

"Idiot." He said quietly, walking away from Sonic. "Sonic." He said sharply. The blue hedgehog made an inquisitive noise. "How do you feel about Rose?"

"I…" He trailed off. Knowing that neither of them liked to talk about this kind of thing, Shadow took pity on him.

"I can point the gun at you if it'll help." That brought a small laugh out of the blue hedgehog.

"No thanks." He shook his head. Neither of them said anything for a minute, both looking away from the other. "I…like her." He said quietly.

"In what way?" Sonic grimaced.

"I don't know. I can't stand her when she's all gushy, but I love being around her." He sighed. "And I hate the emo talk." Shadow let loose a bark of laughter.

"I'll tell her you apologized." Shadow said walking out the still open door. He paused on the threshold. "And I'll pay for the hole." He called over his shoulder. Shadow walked to his motorcycle, feeling strangely peaceful. _At least he cares for her._ He thought to himself._ at least one of us has someone to care for in this world._

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A/N: Not every ending is completely happy.


	7. Twenty Minutes to Bond

A/N: Sometimes it's good to take a break from writing longer stories and just put something random up. Also this is related to Living Pains.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

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Living Pains: Twenty Minutes to Bond

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Shadow the Hedgehog was very annoyed. How did it come to this? Waiting inside the most feminine clothes store he had ever seen for his housemate. All because she wanted to apply for a job. Stupid driver's license. Why did he have to have one?

"Shadow stop pouting! I'll be done in an hour." Shadow shot her a glare. "Fine go look around, I'll call you when I'm down okay?"

"Whatever." He said standing up. He straightened his dark red t-shirt with the words "Creepy Doll" in black. He brushed off his dark-blue jeans before walking out the door. He felt better being outside that unbearably pink store Rose was obsessed with. He wandered over to the food court where he ran into Vanilla the Rabbit and her daughter Cream.

"Oh, Shadow. Um, I hate to impose upon you, but could you watch Cream for me?" This earned her a curious look from the ebony hedgehog. "Need to look at some things and I'm afraid Cream would get bored." Shadow glanced down at the smaller rabbit. She smiled at him shyly. Again he was roped into something because of cuteness. He was never going to live this down.

"I can watch her. How long? I only have forty-five minutes before Rose needs me."

"Only about twenty minutes. And thank you again Shadow, this means a lot to me." And with that she was off into the crowd. Shadow looked down at the shy little girl.

"So what do you want to do?" He asked, having no idea what the rabbit found entertaining.

"We could go to the arcade Mr. Shadow." She suggested in her most polite voice.

"Sure. Don't call me 'mister' okay?" She shook her head firmly.

"That would be rude Mr. Shadow." Remembering that she was young, and who her mother was, he managed to keep his temper. Which he nearly lost when she grabbed his hand hesitantly.

"What are you doing." He asked, doing his best not to get angry.

"Mother said I should always hold hands when someone is taking me somewhere. That way I won't get lost and no one will have to worry about me." Shadow couldn't help but let the ghost of a smile cross his face.

"Well then Miss Cream, where is the arcade?" He honestly had no idea. Amy was the one that spent all her money at the mall. Not him.

"It's that why Mr. Shadow." She pointed off to the right. They began in the direction she indicated, but had taken only a few steps when Creams stomach growled lightly. Shadow chuckled lightly.

"Have you eaten yet? It is lunch time." She shook her head.

"Mother and I are eating after she gets back."

"Well then let's get you a snack." He walked her over to a restaurant and bought her a small snack. He got himself a taco from Taco Bell. After they ate they wandered over to the arcade where Shadow got thirty dollars worth of tokens. Cream looked at him questioningly. "We might be here a while. So what do you want to play?" She looked around until she spotted the air hockey table. She glanced at him and he walked her over to it. "You think you can beat me?" She nodded. "Then let's go."

They played several rounds, Shadow only allowed himself to win three. Cream was actually pretty good but he's Shadow the Hedgehog. He still let her win though. After people grew annoyed by their hogging the air hockey table, Shadow saw they had ten minutes left before Vanilla wanted to pick Cream up.

"So princess, what do you want to play now?" Despite himself, Shadow was actually enjoying spending time with the young girl.

"Can we play that next?" She asked pointing at a fighting game. He looked at her strangely.

"Really?" She nodded enthusiastically. "Okay." They went to the machine and picked their characters. Cream picked a ninja girl and Shadow picked a knight with a giant right arm. Thirty seconds later Cream had a perfect victory over him. "How?" He asked in shock. "Rematch!" And so they continued until it was time to go. Shadow had won two matches, the first because Cream had gotten a ring out on herself, the second because he panicked and hit random buttons causing his character to shoot lightning at Cream's, knocking her out of the arena.

As they entered the cafeteria to look for Vanilla, Shadow discovered he was not in a bad mood. He had liked spending time with Cream. He spotted Vanilla walking towards them and waved slightly.

"Thank you again Shadow." She said sweetly.

"Don't mention it. I had fun. If you need anyone to watch her again call me." He gave her his cell phone number and was about to leave when Cream grabbed his hand.

"Cream don't be rude." Vanilla scolded her.

"No it's okay." He knelt down to her height. "What is it Cream?" She hugged him. He flushed bright crimson in surprise.

"Thank you Mr. Shadow." She looked at her mother. "Can Mr. Shadow come eat with us?"

"I don't see why not. Shadow?" He nodded with a small smile. Then his phone rang. He answered to Amy asking where he was.

"Yeah…one second Rose. Vanilla can she come to? I'd feel bad leaving her like this."

"Of course."

"Hey Rose, I'm in the food court with Cream and Vanilla. Get over here so we get eat with them." After he hung up they waited for a few minutes until Amy walked up to them.

"Hey guys." She flashed them a dazzling smile. "Where are we going to eat at."

"Can we eat there mother?" Cream asked indicating a Chinese food restaurant.

"I'm sorry but it's too expensive." Vanilla said sadly.

"I'll buy." Shadow said casually walking towards the restaurant.

"Shadow, I couldn't possibly ask you to do that."

"Which is why I'm doing it. If you had asked I probably would have taken us to Taco Bell." Amy snorted.

"Probably?" She asked with a raised eyebrow. They began to debate this lightly until Vanilla said something she knew would stop them.

"You two make an adorable couple."

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A/N: Oh that Vanilla. Lolz. Anyway R&R please.


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